Disney Cruise Line--Mazatlan

The second port of call on our Summer 2008 Disney Cruise was Mazatlan. As we pulled into the dock, we could see the shrimp boats going in and out. While July is not "shrimp season" the shrimp were still quite large at this point. The shrimp are even bigger in October and November. Incredible!

Here we are on the Disney Magic as it pulls into port. We were able to dock at the pier in Mazatlan--no tendering required. Our excursion--oh, excuse me, our Port Adventure was a tour of Old Town followed by an afternoon on the beach. The Port Adventure included lunch and a fiesta.

While we drove through the hilly city on the bus, we made a stop at a high cliff for photos then ventured back into the city and visited an old cathedral. If memory serves, it was built in the 1500's. Mazatlan was once a hide-out for pirates and a fortress city to fend off attacks. Since the sea is dotted with islands and rocky cliffs you can see how pirates used it as a hide-out. There are also caves in the sides of hills in the city to hide treasure. As most Mexican metropolitan areas, Mazatlan is a mixture of old and new and they juxtapose at every turn.

After the cathedral, we went to see the cliff divers. Well, they really don't jump from a cliff, more like a rocky crag, It was amazing to see them dive into the shallows and then emerge to climb the steps and do it again. What courage!

I know he is thinking about diving, too. No way! But how did I know that just one year later he would be going off the high dive. Did we set that up by having him see the cliff divers? Who knows.

After the cliff divers, we headed to our resort hotel for the afternoon. Before hitting the beach, we were treated to a Mexican buffet lunch and a show. There were authentic Mexican dancers and musicians. The food was good, too.

Then it was off the beach to swim in the Pacific Ocean. The beach was a public beach except for a portion of the sand that was roped off as hotel property. Since it was a public beach, that means vendors. The husband stayed in a chair for a while to keep an eye on our stuff and was approached by many vendors. Eventually, they weakened him and he bought a $10 straw hat. I'm laughing even as I type this because it is a funny story. The husband said the vendor was American and he felt sorry for him and bought the hat. I'm thinking what a great way to afford a summer in Mazatlan--sell a few hats in a few hours and then surf. We still have the hat.

How we returned to the ship is an interesting story and I wish I had a photo, but I don't. In Mazatlan they drive these little dune buggies crossed with VW's. They are open air, some have roofs and some have doors, but only front windows. Think golf cart on steroids. Anyway, since we could leave the resort and head back to the ship at anytime in the afternoon, we just headed to the main lobby of the hotel when we were ready to leave and the bellman summoned one of the "cars" with a driver to take us back to the port. We made it back OK!

Did you know that room service is included in your Disney cruise? Yes, other than alcoholic beverages or sodas, room service is include. . . that means free! On our last cruise we pre-ordered milk, juice, cereal, fruit, and pastries to be delivered to our stateroom each morning so that we didn't feel rushed to get to breakfast. We pre-ordered by putting an order form on our door before going to bed indicating what we wanted and the time. A few moments before deliver, the phone would ring. . . that would wake us up and within moments, a knock on the door would indicate our order was here. The server would bring it into the room and set it on the table. The husband and boy were typically still in bed, so I would take care of the tip. We also had milk and cookies delivered to the room almost nightly. Ah, how many days until my next cruise?

To read about our first port of call, click here.